The Tennessee Highway Patrol will be conducting a driver license roadside safety checkpoint from 8 to 10 p.m. Jan. 28 on Hwy. 27 at the Roane/Rhea County line.

Recognizing the danger presented to the public by unqualified drivers, troopers will concentrate their efforts on vehicles being operated by drivers who would violate the driver license laws of Tennessee.

Miles Ledbetter Jr. might have done better in the election had he fought as hard as officers alleged he did on Jan. 6.
Officers with the Roane County Sheriff’s Office went to his home to arrest him on two outstanding warrants for harassment.
Ledbetter, who ran for Roane County executive last year, did not go quietly. The arrest report said he broke away from one officer and then punched another in the nose.

At least four Roane County residents have run afoul of TennCare laws since November, according to the Tennessee Office of the Inspector General.
The latest was Bradley Allen Price.
The Inspector General’s office said Friday that Price, 34, was charged with TennCare fraud for doctor shopping in Knox County.
He was also charged with obtaining possession of a controlled substance by fraud.

A strong chemical smell tends to be an obvious sign of meth activity.
Deputies detected the smell at a home on River Road last Tuesday.
“We talked to the people there and saw signs and evidence that meth was being cooked and being used,” Roane County Sheriff Jack Stockton said. “We took four people into custody and actually found the components of the lab where they had recently been cooking.”

The Tennessee Highway Patrol will conduct sobriety roadside safety checkpoints during the week of Dec. 26 on U.S. Hwy. 70 at Poland Hollow Road in Roane County.
Impaired driving is a serious crime that kills more than 16,000 people and injures 305,000 others every year in the United States.
Troopers will evaluate drivers for signs of alcohol or drug impairment. They will target those who operate a vehicle while impaired and take corrective actions for other violations observed while ensuring the protection of all motorists.

A man is suspected of stealing a jar containing money donated to Operation REACH from 518 Liquor and Wine in Rockwood.
Operation REACH is a local charity that gives needy children the opportunity to buy Christmas presents. Police said the jar contained at least $40.
Authorities have identified the suspect thanks to surveillance video and a damning piece of evidence that was left behind — a job application for the store.
The application had the man’s name, driver’s license number, date of birth and address.